LOTSA Joy & Spunk: Larry Goodell features Monday at EOE

I’m so thrilled to say that Larry Goodell is our feature Monday night at East of Edith 7:00 pm at the Projects (3614 High Street NE). The above picture is labeled “Larry’s Tap Dance Costume 1942” and reflects the essential spirit I’ve seen in every performance I’ve had the chance to witness for the last twenty years on the poetry scene…. His revels and playful rips never cease to delight and surprise: no idea what will come out of his mouth or which props he’ll use or whether or not he’ll prance about… A local legend.

Here’s some scoop on our favorite Placitas poet from the latest Malpais Review which features Larry for this issue. (And if you don’t know the Malpais review, it’s a beautiful and in-depth magazine with national and international contributors and readers which is edited by another favorite Placitas Poet, Gary Brower.)

ABOUT LARRY FROM THE MALPAIS:

Larry Goodell was born in Roswell, New Mexico, in 1935, got his B.A. degree from USC in L.A, moved to Placitas, New Mexico, in 1963 and founded Duende Press. He published new writing by Margaret Randall, Kenneth Irby, Larry Eigner and Judson Crews, among others. His wife, Lenore, is a photographer and cartographer. Goodell has organized poetry readings in the Albuquerque area since 1970 and has developed his own “readings” into almost theatrical or performance events. He is presently archiving his work and doing online work in poetry, commentary & music.

Larry writes: ‘My notebooks contain handwritten scores, I like to call them, rather than ‘drafts,’ since I don’t really revise. I get an on-edgy joy while guiding a poem making itself up. The time of writing develops the subject of each poem and determines if there is any need for prop or mask to help perform it.

Ricardo Sanchez writes: “There is a shaman grousing in the thin, reedlike body of Larry Goodell. There is a song unwinding in the nasal, reedy voice as he enunciates a poetics of madness and joy, of celebration and realization — and the words seem to dance from him.
Everything becomes a work of poetical art, very political in its sense of the power and magic of language — not at all politics or the vying for a position, but the kind of politicizing empowerment which has no need or fear of systems and totemic idiocies.
There is a fine line between madcap poesie and chaos in Goodell, and it is a delectable and enjoyable poetics, one which speaks to language in its vastness, in its power to redefine reality, to somehow make space elastic so that the plastic cutey-pie inanity of popular media cannot devour the spirit. . . . a bard who has firmly established himself as a poet of power, wit, inventiveness and gringo-loco poetics.”

The phrase “gringo-loco poetics” is a gorgeous and faithful way to finish the promo for Larry. And reminds me of two small fond memories, one from a show at Silvas Bar in Bernalillo, and one I just heard about.

The overheard first: Picture Larry Goodell dancing about in a tutu for a performance will Kell Robertson (the renowned and recently passed cantankerous and wildly gifted and lyric cowboy poet and singer/songwriter).

The second from the bar: Larry comes out in an “Old Man Mask” and then for the big reveal, pulls it off, and reveals an “Old Man.”

Infinitely delight and one of the true “originals”… we are thrilled to have him as our feature on Monday at East of Edith. We’ll have our usual open mic also… No charge but donations VERY welcome!

Thanks and hope to see you. For me, this will be a joyous capstone to a run of about eight LPG events in four days and be where I get to heave a one more final sigh and laugh… I thank Larry in advance.